Advocatus Diaboli
by onryoii
Summary: Sector XIII of the Vatican; a division designed to erradicate the darkness of the world with the help of its priests. Feliciano Vargas is one such priest who is aided by his 'Knight', Ludwig to assure his safety. A safety which may now be in jeopardy.
1. I

A shrill scream echoed off the cobblestones and faded off into an eerily still silence through the steady drizzle of rain that pattered against the dark stones.

For a few seconds, it was still again until the sound of feet splashing through the puddles that gathered between the stones sounded down the length of the dark alley. A young woman appeared out of the shadows soon after, blond hair disheveled from her furious running through the rain.

Coming to a stop, she looked around wildly, blue eyes wide as she hugged her trembling hands to her rain-soaked sweater, breaths coming out in ragged pants. Nearby, a trash can fell over with a crash and she let out a startled shriek which dwindled away into a whimper as it was muffled away, realizing it was only a cat as the mangy animal hissed and darted off down the alley.

A reptilian-like hiss sounded a ways back from where she'd come and the woman gasped, quickly pressing herself back into the shadows close to an outcropping of a door near the trash cans.

The poor light being filtered through the rain from the light on the side of the building was enough to make it easy to see the dark shape that came slinking out of the shadows beyond. Light glinted off the claws that scrapped against the wet ground, red eyes looking about for a moment as a slick black tongue moved its way along the ground as if searching for something. Lingering there a moment longer, the creature let out another hiss before moving on down the alley.

Standing still, the woman covered her mouth as she watched the dark figure disappear into the darkness. Staying put for a few more moments, she watched the spot the thing had vanished down before turning to run back up the alley in the opposite direction. Well, that's what she had _planned _on doing. Upon turning to leave, she found herself staring into the red eyes she'd seen moments ago and the breath stilled in her lungs as she gawked.

Slowly, the figure rose onto its legs.

A sharp scream sounded through the air before it was silenced; a steady trickle of blood washed away down the cobblestones with the rain.

* * *

><p><em>Ding-dong…ding-dong….ding-dong…ding-dong…<em>

Amber eyes slowly flickered open at the steady, familiar tolling of the church bells that he'd been hearing since he could remember. Some of his earliest memories he found were that of the early morning ringing of the bells to awaken the sleeping city and rid the air of bad demons with their bright noise.

Well, that was what some said, anyways.

Sitting up, the brunette rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hands with a soft sigh before placing his hands in his lap to peer off out the window that looked out on the street that lay below the Vatican's church. Already people were coming for morning mass or were sightseers wanting to see the beautiful building for themselves before the afternoon rush came through.

_Ding-dong…_

He was actually quite jealous of all of them, to tell the truth. They could lead normal lives which was something that Feliciano could never have.

_Ding-dong…_

But that's what was expected of one who was born into the Vargas bloodline. They were a long line of holy warriors birthed to keep the world free of dark beings that sought to destroy them and everything bright. Yes, as terribly cliché as it sounded, it was a good summary of what they did.

Sector XIII of the Vatican; an unknown division that existed only to those who were in it.

And while all of its members were human and part of family lines that had served the church since the beginning of time like Feliciano's, there were those that were…'picked up along the way', so to speak.

_Ding-dong…_

"Good morning, Feliciano."

A startled yelp sounded from the Italian at the sudden, masculine voice that sounded from his doorway and the young man quickly turned his head to look to the tall blond who was standing quietly in the doorway with that ever-somber expression of his.

"Oh, L-Ludwig…" He stammered quickly with an exasperated sigh, fingers curling into his bed sheets as he wilted over them. "You about gave me a heart attack."

"My apologies, I did not mean to disturb you. I can come back later if you would like-"

"No, no, stay. You rarely come here without a good reason."

And judging from the look on his face, this supposed 'good reason' was, in fact, a bad reason. Feliciano had learned years ago how to read Ludwig's facial expressions, or lack thereof. The German was always stoic and serious and rarely ever smiled but Feliciano was one of the two or three that could read him like a book.

"Come, sit." He invited, patting the bed next to him. Ludwig eyed the spot warily, as if suspecting a trick before he moved to sit on the indicated place though made it a point to sit as straight as possible and on little of the mattress as he could without falling off, clearly not at all comfortable there.

Feliciano merely smiled, "So, what did you want to talk about?"

Icy blue eyes slid over to the bubbly male for a moment before looking back across the room with a sigh, "There was a murder last night."

"Oh?" Feliciano mused with mild interest, though he already knew what the German was getting at. "And it wasn't the work of humans, was it?" Ludwig shook his head in response and Feliciano sighed, "Then that means I have to get up, huh?"

"Ja."

Flinging the covers off, Fleiciano slipped out of the bed to cross the room and began digging through his dresser for some clothes to wear. "Hey, Ludwig, what do you think-…" He turned around only to see the German gone and he briefly went to the door to see if he was out in the hallway but no such sign was there. Frowning, he closed the door with a sigh and unbuttoned his night shirt. He always took a chance to slip off when one presented itself it seemed like.

Once he'd dressed in the proper uniform (black slacks, shoes, and white shirt which was covered by an equally black jacket. The only trace of real color was on the shoulder where a set of three silver cords attached to the flap of his collar and the red tie tucked neatly inside his jacket.), made it a point to all but run from the room, tucking the silver rosary neatly into place in the breast pocket of his jacket as he made his way down a flight of stairs.

Bursting through a set of heavy oak doors, the brunette was quick to spot Ludwig speaking with another member of the sector; an informant, to be exact, who was holding a case file with him.

"Good morning, Feliciano. About time you joined us. I was going to send Ludwig up to drag you down here if you didn't hurry."

"I'm sorry." The Italian quickly apologized, bowing briefly as he panted for breath and took a seat at a table where Ludwig joined him.

Setting down the files, the middle-aged man stroked at the stubble on his cheek with a sigh, "Quite a messy one we've got here." He explained, flipping open the file to show the photos within that he spread apart with a wave of his hand over them, "Girl found dead in an alley, sliced apart, heart missing, and no evidence whatsoever."

Feliciano let out a small hum as he picked a photo up to examine the severed limb that had been photographed for evidence and frowned. Why were demons so messy about their killing? At least vampires drained their victims of blood…

"What we need you to do is go down to investigate the area. We've preoccupied the police force for now but you have a time frame, so don't mess around…or get _distracted_. Ludwig, I'm leaving it to you to make sure he stays on task."

"Of course."

"You may leave. We have a ride waiting for you outside."

Standing, Ludwig waited patiently for Feliciano to gather the file together before getting up as well. Like the Italian, Ludwig was clad in black but he lacked any trace of color on the uniform anywhere. But the only clue one needed as to what he did was the tattered black cloak wrapped around his shoulders and held by a silver clasp made in the shape of a cross; a symbol of the Wyrven.

Better known as half-breeds.

Ludwig was one of the few whose blood ran mingled with that of a human's and one of the creatures that Sector XIII sought to destroy; demons, vampires, werewolves, the works. While they were looked down upon by the higher ups, research over the years had proved that they were quite useful out in the field in being, well, frankly, meat shields for the priests in the line of fire.

The nicer way of saying it was that these individuals were to be called 'Knights' and used to help protect those they serves. In Ludwig's case, he protected Feliciano, having inherited the boy under his protection when his father had died. What threw him off the most was how friendly the brunette was towards him, even when he knew what he was.

Falling into stride with the petite Italian, Ludwig looked down at the male who was flipping idly through the photos and papers. How one could be so carefree was a mystery to him. But, the boy was still young; he had years ahead of him to learn what things were really like.

"Ludwig."

Blinking as his name was spoken; the German gave a questioning hum, blue eyes meeting amber.

"I never said good morning to you."

"Good morning."

Staring quietly for a moment, Ludwig sighed some and the faintest trace of a smile crossed his lips, "…Ja."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Ok, new story guys. I told myself I wasn't going to write anything else until I finished my Assassin's Creed fic but I wanted to type some Hetalia and get at least one intro for my other planned stories done. xD

GerIta, enjoy~!

Btw, Wyrven, totally made up the word. BD Lol. Good night! *goes to le sleep*


	2. II

A soft crackling of gravel under the rubber tires echoed softly off the walls of the alley as the black vehicle rolled along. The small stream of sunlight filtering in through the space between the buildings allowed enough light for one to make out the sight of the bright yellow police tape that had been stretched across the path of the car a few feet ahead.

Feliciano shimmied in his seat to lean forward, peering between the two front seats to try to get a better look at the crime scene that had been taped off that morning. As a hand clapped down onto his shoulder and pulled him suddenly back against the seat, the brunette let out a soft grunt, a scowl crossing his lips, "What? I just wanted to look."

"We're still moving, Feliciano, sit still."

Amber eyes locked onto blue in a brief moment of confrontation, the young priest trying his hardest to hold his own against Ludwig's unwavering stare but his resolve cracked eventually and he quickly turned his gaze elsewhere.

He did manage to get in a last comment before slumping back begrudgingly against the seat, "We're hardly moving…"

Their ride didn't last much longer as the driver slowed to a gradual stop once they were close enough within walking distance of the yellow tape. Sitting up now that there was no forward momentum to make the overly-paranoid German next to him have an excuse to make him sit still, Feliciano slid over on the seat to grab the door handle next to him and opened it with a heavy sigh of exasperation from his guardian.

Ignoring his clear irritation, Feliciano reached inside to pluck the folder of information from the seat and bounded over to the investigation tape. It was simple enough for him to duck down and slip underneath but Ludwig was forced to pick it up some so he could slip through as well.

The rumbling of the car engine died away as the driver shut it off to wait for the two to finish with their scouring of the area for any sign of where the killer had gone.

The body had been moved by now, taken away by the police but it had, without a doubt, landed in the hands of the Vatican rather than in the morgue with all the other bodies. There was no need for the body just yet, however, the outline on the ground was an idea enough of where the poor woman had fallen and, judging from the amount of dried blood on the ground, it was not going to be a pretty sight to see.

Wrinkling his nose at the thought, Feliciano stuffed a hand into the pocket of his pants to pull out a pair of latex gloves, stretching them over his hands as he turned to his guardian. "Ludwig," He began to get the blonde's attention, "Why don't you start over there, see if you can pick anything up while I search here."

A simple, curt nod was given before the tall male turned to wander over to a pile of boxes that was scattered about and gingerly picked them up one at a time to give them a thorough inspection.

Turning his head towards the splatters of blood along the ground, Feliciano knelt down on the cobblestones to rummage through his pocket for a small vial of liquid. A thumb was gently pressed against the silver stopper that kept the liquid inside secure to open it. He pondered over the blood thoughtfully for a moment before placing a thumb over the opening and tipping it to the side, allowing a few small drops of the liquid to drip out onto the ground.

Immediately upon contact, the blood sizzled away with an angry hiss and Feliciano was quick to lean away to avoid the sudden gush of steam that sprang into the air. He waved a hand dismissively at Ludwig who'd paused to make sure the boy was all right and slid amber eyes back onto the spot where he'd dropped the liquid.

The blood in the area had been cleared away and a small sigh slipped past his lips, settling down onto his rear, folding his legs together with a thoughtful purse of his lips. That meant it had indeed been a demon that'd done the killing and not just some crazed psychopath. When a demon made their kill, there was a virus of sorts that transmitted itself into the blood of the victim. If, by some chance, the victim survived the attack and managed to get away- this was an extremely rare occurrence, mind you- it was only a matter of time before the transmitted virus destroyed them from the inside out, quite literally. It'd rip apart the human anatomy so that the virus could take over and reform the body into a more suitable form to carry out its own killing.

Feliciano had seen one or two of these individuals before and it was not a pretty sight. He'd rather deal with an actual demon than one of its lesser spawn.

"Feliciano."

Blinking at the sound of his name, the Italian twisted around some to see what Ludwig wanted his attention for and his brows furrowed upon seeing that he was pointing to something on the ground. Twisting his legs underneath him to get a leverage to stand up, he made his way over to the blonde, brushing dirt off the fabric of his pants, "What is it, Ludwig?"

The man stayed silent and kept a finger pointing to the ground. Leaning over to see around him to get a better look, Feliciano didn't see anything for a moment that could've been of interest and his lips quirked into a frown, "What? It's just blood, it's everywhere, Ludwig." He didn't see what was so important about a few more splashes to add to the mix thrown about like a child that had gone haphazard with paint.

Sighing some, Ludwig knelt down onto a knee and reached out a hand towards the puddle, his fingers dipping into it and coming out red. Holding his hand out towards Feliciano, a stern look spread across his face, "Feliciano, look. It's still _wet_." The other blood in the area had dried for the most part but this one was clearly fresh.

A soft rasping noise sounded nearby and Ludwig was on his feet in an instant, blue eyes flashing quickly around the area for the source. Feliciano had been working with Ludwig long enough to know when he did that it was never a good thing and he too turned his gaze to the edges of the building above them. The rasping noise sounded again and Feliciano couldn't help but note that it sounded oddly like metal scraping against rock.

Down the alley a few feet away, the path split off into a separate turn and it was there that a trashcan suddenly fell over with a crash that made both males jump in response, whirling towards the noise. Swallowing thickly, Feliciano shifted towards the area along with Ludwig who had a hand sliding towards the belt around his waist, fingers curling around a small black tube.

It was a bit troublesome, being kept a secret division and all. And it wasn't normal anymore for people to be carrying around weapons other than guns out in the open. Therefore, the Vatican had taken Ludwig's weapon of choice and, with a bit of help from their trade in magic, had helped to create a discreet and concealable container. The idea of them using magic may have been shocking for some to think of but there were two kinds of magic in the world; black and white, and the Sector only used white since it was the most effective in countering the creatures they fought to destroy. However, Feliciano had somewhat dabbled in some of the darker magic on his own time.

As Ludwig twisted the cap off, a small flash of light appeared and in place of the black container was the handle of a longsword. It was an old weapon, Feliciano had been told that much about it but that was all he knew on the subject, and Ludwig refused to tell him more. It was simple enough; steel that was meticulously shined and sharpened every night by the German. The only difference in the simplistic build of the weapon was in the pommel and rain guard. The pommel was fashioned into a circle but the center was emblazed with some coat of arms; a shield outlined in flowers and two wolves perched on either side of the shield, hackles raised and lips curled in fierce snarls. The rain guard itself was fashioned into a sharp point up the flat of the blade but band of metal twisted around it for added protection; decorated along the band were various symbols in some language that Feliciano was not familiar with.

Ludwig indicated for Feliciano to stay put for a moment as he made his way over towards the trash cans, leaning against the side of the building for a moment to listen before rounding around with the weapon ready to strike. Instead of seeing something of threat, Ludwig found himself staring down a cat that had been caught scavenging through the remnants of the trash can.

Staring blankly at the creature, Ludwig heaved a sigh and placed the cap of the tube back against the point of the blade and the weapon shrank back down into the simple black container it was made out to be, clipping it back onto his belt. The blonde's nose wrinkled in disgust as Feliciano came over with a happy croon and plucked up the kitten. Seeing the expression on his guardian's face, Feliciano flashed a grin, "Why do you hate cats so much? They're so cute and fluffy, honestly, just pet it!"

"I don't want to."

"C'mon, Ludwig, just pet its ears!" Feliciano demanded, holding the animal out towards Ludwig who immediately backpedaled away. With a devious grin, Feliciano advanced on the German with the cat brandished before him like a weapon.

"Feliciano…" The German warned with a stern look, gaze flicking uncertainly towards the feline staring calmly up at him.

The sudden sound of wrenching metal and a cry broke the silence, the two turning to look back towards where they'd left the car in time to see the driver being yanked out of the driver's seat and down and alley. Gasping, Feliciano released the cat that let out a hiss and darted off while Ludwig ran off towards the commotion. The German slid to a stop in time to see a dark shadow in the alley bent over the driver who was choking on blood, stomach ripped open.

Slowly, the creature lifted its gaze from its food when it realized it was being watched, red points of eyes focusing onto the German. For a few moments, it was a silent stare down until Feliciano came into view. Stepping over the body, the demon let out a soft growl and as it approached the same rasping sound of metal echoing against the bricks could be heard. As it came into the light, Feliciano felt his heartbeat quicken. Bloodstained, metal claws dug against the ground as it moved and the creature was a sickly gray color. There were a few strands of dark hair from the otherwise bald skull. It wore nothing but tattered brown pants and as it moved closer to them, Feliciano could make the glint of metal protruding from its back; upon closer inspection, he could see that it was an array of knives and scissors. It began to pick up speed the closer it got to them and jaws parted to reveal a row of sharp, pointed teeth, a screech sounding from the depths of its throat.

"Time to go." Ludwig commanded, grabbing Feliciano's arm to turn and yank off towards the car, shoving him inside the open driver's door and into the passenger's seat. Slipping in, he silently thanked the driver for leaving the keys in the ignition and twisted it, bring the car to life. As his hand moved for the gear shift, a sudden weight on the car made the frame squeak on its hinges and both men were smart enough to slide down in their seats just as metal claws crunched through the roof of the vehicle.

Putting the vehicle into drive, Ludwig slammed on the gas, stopping whatever second attack the demon was going to put against the roof of the car as it clung onto it instead. A realization came to the German who slammed onto the brakes at once which, by a stroke of luck, sent the demon catapulting over the hood of the car and onto the ground in front of them. They couldn't take it out onto the main roads without it being seen by everyone and possibly causing more harm.

Shifting gears into reverse, Ludwig sped backwards down the alley and turned down another passageway. Feliciano finally spoke up in a breathless gasp, "What was that thing? I've never seen anything like that before!"

Ludwig shook his head simply in response, "I don't know. But I need you to set up a spell, something that'll trap it here long enough for us to get away without it followi-"

"Ludwig!"

Seeing the horrified look on the Italian's face, Ludwig's brows furrowed and he looked over to the empty space where the door had been ripped off previously to see a set of claws coming through the door at him. He quickly swerved and set the demon off balance enough to bury the claws into the seat instead of into him, though one managed to pierce his flesh but that was the least of their concerns right now.

An idea struck him and Ludwig slammed the side of the car against the wall, pinning the demon against the wall with a pained shriek, "Feliciano, hurry!" He shouted to the Italian who was muttering a few words softly under his breath, a slight glow appearing between his clenched fingers. Ludwig feared the car was going to get ripped in half if he kept it up any longer but Feliciano finished in time, "Move!" The Italian commanded, leaning forwards with a small glowing ball of light in his hand. Ludwig slid down so the priest could lean over him and gently tapped his fingers against the pinned arm of the demon. The light shot across the point of contact and across the demon as Ludwig pulled the car off the wall, bands of light strapping down across the limbs and against the wall.

They sped away, leaving the battered demon behind with an angry screech as it struggled against the binds. Watching the figure disappear as they sped out of the alley and off onto the main road, sending the cars they'd blocked off with their exit into a honking frenzy at the near collision, Feliciano slowly eased back down into his seat with a heavy sigh.

Driving on in silence, Feliciano finally spoke once his heart wasn't in danger of leaping out of his mouth, "That was close. Do you think that was what killed the girl?" When he was greeted by silence, he turned his gaze over to the German and balked as he saw his eyes were starting to close.

"Ludwig!" He stated, grabbing his arm to shake him awake but it seemed to do the opposite as his hand only made the German's clenched around the steering wheel swerve suddenly and he slumped over onto his side. Catching the male before he could fall over all the way, Feliciano felt warmth against his hands and lifted one away to see the red coating his hand and peered over to see the dark stain on Ludwig's black clothes. He suddenly remembered the steering wheel and reached out a hand to keep it straight but the slick substance on his hand did little to correct it as the wheel slid out of his grip and careened off the road and slid in grass, flipping suddenly as the front in came into contact with a tree.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry it's taking so long. I've been on a Homestuck spree lately with little muse for Hetalia. And I joined a Hetalia writing competition-thing so I have to type oneshots for those so posts for this will be slow and sporradic. My apologies.**


	3. III

"Fel-"

"-an you hear me?"

Through the ringing in his ears, the young Italian could make out pieces of the words being spoken to him but he was far too dazed to respond right away. It took a moment to realize he was laying on the ground outside of the smashed car with faces staring down at him. How had he gotten there exactly? He slowly began to ease himself up and shouts for him to stay down bounced off his aching skull; his face twisting into a look of irritation and discomfort with the loud volume so he obliged and let the hands ease him back down on the ground.

Gradually, the ringing in his ears faded away and he could think with more coherency. Letting his eyes close, he lifted a hand to rub against his forehead but paused at the slick feeling that coated his fingers and he pulled the limb away to examine it. The sight of the thick, red substance brought it rushing back to him and he let out a sharp gasp and surged to his feet, "Ludwig!"

Staying seated may have been a good idea because the second he was up, the world swam in his vision and he wobbled forward dangerously. A hand clamped down onto his shoulder, steadying him, and he shut his eyes against his suddenly spotted vision.

After a few moments, the Italian opened his eyes to look back at the hand resting agianst the dusty fabric of his jacket and he noted the stern face of the Sector's director. He immediately grimaced and stayed quiet as the man turned to exchange a few words with those around him before gingerly leading the boy away from the group that had formed and towards the curb where his own vehicle was parked. Opening the passenger door, the middle-aged man indicated for Feliciano to take a seat and he did so gladly.

Amber eyes lifted as a napkin entered his vision and he accepted it, using it to wipe the blood off his hands and looked around for a moment to assess the damage. Skid marks swerved along the road and deep ruts had marred the green grass from where the car had tumbled. The area itself had been blocked off and an ambulance waited nearby. The only problem was that there was no sign of Ludwig. Chewing his lip between his teeth, Feliciano let his gaze turn back onto the director and he opened his mouth to speak.

"You want to know where Ludwig is, hm?"

"S-si..." He agreed after a moment, looking back to the car. The hood was partially caved in and there was no hope of getting it fixed. It could've been a lot worse. The scent of tobbaco hit his nose and he looked back towards the older man who had pulled a cigar from the pocket of his jacket and was currently attempting to light it. After a moment of watching, Feliciano reached up to take the matches from him and struck one himself; holding the flame up to the end while the director puffed on the end to try to get it to catch.

Once it was burning properly, the man took his matches back from Feliciano with a small hum, "_Grazie_, Feli." He mumbled around the end of it.

"I really don't know why you have to smoke those; you know it's bad for your health."

Wrinkling his nose, the director pulled the cigar from his mouth to spit on the ground, "I don't give a damned what those doctors tell me. If I want to smoke I will damn well do so and they can all rot in hell."

Despite his colorful way of speaking, Feliciano couldn't say he wasn't amusing company.

p."As for Ludwig," The director began again, taking a puff on his cigar before leaning against the side of the car, "We got him out of here before you came to."

"Yes, but is he _alive_?"

Blue eyes settled onto Feliciano for a moment and he cleared his throat, "Barely. He was unconcious and bleeding heavily which is a troubling matter given his blood type... Feliciano, what _did_ you find out there? His injuries were from no mere car accident and I for one know quite well that Ludwig is a capable driver. He would never cause something like this under normal circumstances." He mused, indicating with his cigar to the car nearby.

Feliciano's lips pursed in thought and he finally shook his head, "I... I don't know what it was, Director, I really don't. It was fast though... And dark. Terribly dark." He lifted his gaze with a concerned look, "I really don't think it's anything we've dealt with before."

The director chewed thoughtfully on the end of his cigar before he finally sighed, "Well, then this is quite the troubling matter. We should get back and look into it further. Did you get a good look at this.. Whatever the hell attacked you two?"

"Si."

"Good, because we may just need a picture of this damned thing." Especially if they had no clue _what_ it was.

Feliciano lifted his legs to move them inside as the vehicle; the door was shutting once he was siutated and he buckled himself in as the director made his way to the driver's side. "You're not going to have me see a doctor?" He ventured curiously after a moment.

A dark brow raised lightly in response to the boy's words, "Are you going to die? Feel woozy? Bleeding profusely from some orafice of your body?"

"Well... No."

"Then no, of course not! You're a young, wiry kid. You'll walk it off." He assured him, smirking at the bright grin he received and carefully wove his way out of the scene and down the street.

As they pulled up to the church, Feliciano all but dove out of the car as it slowed down to a stop and darted up the steps. Weaving his way through the various people he encountered, he skipped the steps and slid down the railing of the stairs that led into the bowels of the church where the Sector was hidden away from prying eyes. Before he could remotely get around the corner, he ran smack into the last person he wanted to sea at the moment.

"Hey! Watch where you're going you-... _Fratello_?"

Feliciano leaned away some to get a better look at his brother and frowned, "_Fratello_, please, I don't have time to waste around here right now. You can yell at me later for being careless but I need to find Lu-"

"The potato bastard, yes, I know." The brunette mused, nose wrinkling in response, "He's in the medical ward now; I just left there. The _bastardo_ is sleeping right now but he's fine so would you kindly calm down before you kill someone next time." A brief look of discomfort crossed Lovino's face as he was grabbed into a hug and he gently patted his brother's back before he was rushing off down the hall again.

Watching him, Lovino shook his head with a heavy sigh and knelt down to gather together the papers that had been sent flying from the sudden impact prior.

He heeded his brother's words despite his sense of urgency and instead settled for speed-walking down the hall and pushed through the doors into the hospital ward. A nurse paused in discussing something with a doctor to look at the sudden arrival for a moment before pointing a pen in her hand at him, "Feliciano I assume, si?"

"Yes, I'm here to see-"

"Ludwig."

"Ah-... Si." Feliciano didn't know how everyone was knowing these things before he even said them but it was starting to get annoying. However, he got his answer as she indicated for him to follow, "He was talking about you when they brought him in. Of course, he wasn't entirely sure of what was going on either since he'd just woken up on the ride here but it was about you."

She stopped outside a door and pushed it open. The room itself was dark and the curtains drawn around the bed; it was silent except for the steady beeps sounding from a heart monitor. Stepping towards the curtains, the nurse grabbed a handful of the fabric and pulled it open to reveal the bed and the patient, "Just call for someone if you need anything, _signore_."

"Grazie." He mused with a brief, polite nod of his head, watching her leave. As the door clicked shut, he turned to look back at Ludwig and moved closer. Even in the dark he could see that his skin was paler than usual. He grabbed the blanket to lift it gently to examine the bloodied bandages wrapped around his middle and frowned.

"He'll be fine, Feliciano."

Jumping with a soft squeak, Feliciano looked over his shoulder to see the director standing there. Could he be any more quiet? "I know his wounds are fine, but, I'm more worried about the demon itself doing the damage. You know what happens when humans are injured yet survive."

The man nodded and made his way closer to examine the sleeping blonde, "Si, I do. However, Ludwig is not _just_ a human, Feliciano. He has more strength and immunity than we do. However, I'm certain that does not mean he will be comepletely free of infection. It depends on him entirely to fight off the sickness that will try to corrupt him."

Feliciano gave a soft nod in response and the two stood there in silence for a few seconds longer until the director spoke up once more, "I know you would wish to stay here, Feliciano, but we must know more of this creature you faced."

Nodding, the Italian reached out a hand to brush a few strands of hair back into place from Ludwig's brow before he turned to follow the other male back outside.

Minutes later, Feliciano was seated in the library with the director and another man; and elderly priest who had plenty of experience with the creatures they dealt with every day.

"Explain what this demon looked like, child, and with as much detail as you can recall." The elderly man ventured, folding his thin hands onto the table to wait Feliciano's depiction.

"Well..." He began, fingers drumming thoughtfully against the surface of the table, "It had claws; metal claws. They pierced through the car like it was nothing. And it was a sickly gray color but it's hair was long and dark. It also had knives and other things stuck in its back with extremely sharp and pointy teeth, like... Like a shark's, in a way." His brows furrowed lightly as he struggled to recollect more, "And... It's eyes were bright, bright red. I'm not sure what it was exactly, but the way it moved always made a raspy noise; like metal against wet stone. That's all I can remember though, I'm sorry."

The director snorted and leaned back into his chair, "Who would _want_ to remember such a thing; you did just fine. Now, what do you say about all of this, Fallenta?" He mused, turning his gaze onto the priest who had lost himself in thought. Gradually, the man eased himself to his feet and motioned for the two younger men to follow.

"There is one thing that I can think of that may be of some help." He began, shuffling across the library towards a wall of old books. Running a finger along the spines, he finally selected- what appeared to be- a worn leather journal and flipped open the old pages; carefully so as to not tear them. He finally stopped at a section with a small hum of realization and, if Feliciano would dare to guess, apprehension. "Come." He commanded simply, headed to a table nearby and took a seat while Feliciano and the director gathered around.

A bony finger pointed to a rough ink sketch on the page, "Is this what you saw, Feliciano?" It wasn't very detailed, but the way the limbs and back were shaped and sketched in, it was a near-perfect outline. "Yes, that is it!" He declared, a bit too loudly than he meant to.

"So... Mind explaining what this means exacty, Fallenta?"

"Just because I raised you doesn't mean you get to keep using your nicknames for me."

"We can have a nice debate about that later, just tell us what this is."

Rolling his eyes, the priest turned his attention back onto the page and sighed, "A troubling development in this mystery is what this is. This journal was kept by the early members of the Sector back in the 1600's and one of the members had spotted it so they sketched down what they could remember. However, it wasn't the last sighting." He explained, closing the journal to rest his hands in his lap, "In the early 1900s there was another sighting by three individuals within the Sector but, this time, two were killed and one managed to return with news. He succumbed to his injuries shortly after and died."

"Is there anything we can do?" Feliciano ventured, examining the journal with pursed lips.

"Little else is known about this demon but, at one point, the Sector did uncover a name tied to this creature and it is what we have known him as since; just to give it a title, if nothing else."

"What is it?"

"Jack the Ripper... A fitting name for the method in which he kills, wouldn't you agree?"


End file.
